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With the launch of iOS 14 in September, Apple introduced Home Screen widgets for the first time, ushering in an unprecedented wave of customization for the iPhone.

ios14widgetsandcustomicons.jpg

Several apps quickly emerged allowing users to personalize their Home Screen with custom widgets and icons, and new research by Sensor Tower reveals that almost 15% of iPhone users in the U.S. have installed at least one app to do just that.

The Sensor Tower report tracked the download numbers of five of the most popular Home Screen widget apps – Widgetsmith, Color Widgets, Photo Widget: Simple, WidgetBox, and Photo Widget – and found that they had been downloaded from the U.S. App Store 13 million times since iOS 14 was released on September 16.

Installs peaked during the week of September 21, reaching 3.8 million downloads, and this month they have hit 1.7 installs so far. Collectively, the five apps have reached an estimated 45 million installs across the globe to date.

us-iphone-homescreen-widget-app-installs.jpg

When it comes to apps that offer replacement icons for other apps, the top five include Brass, App Icons, Icon Changer +, ScreenKit, and Icon Themer, which have collectively reached 1.8 million iPhone installs in the U.S. since September 16, according to the research.

As the report notes, iPhone users have maintained their interest in adding Android-style custom widgets to their Home Screens over the past two months, and with the recent news that custom app icons no longer route through the Shortcuts App in iOS 14.3 Beta 2, that interest is only likely to continue.

Article Link: Apps for Customizing iOS 14 Home Screens Installed on 15% of US iPhones
 
This works just like democracy, it's good to give the average user the power to customize his phone, just do not expect him to use it wisely.

I mean, I am yet to see a customized Home Screen that looks better than a Home Screen with stock icons.
Subjectivity being what it is, I'd bet none of those customized home screen users think your opinion has merit as it relates to their decisions. They probably also think their creations look better than your (assumption here based on your quote) un-customized home screen. As long as the phone owner likes their home screen look, custom or not, outside opinions don't really mean much.
 
I have a lot of widgets on my main screen mainly for news and sport scores/clock and weather. Don’t like to have loads of apps on my Home Screen on the ones i use.
 
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Subjectivity being what it is, I'd bet none of those customized home screen users think your opinion has merit as it relates to their decisions. They probably also think their creations look better than your (assumption here based on your quote) un-customized home screen. As long as the phone owner likes their home screen look, custom or not, outside opinions don't really mean much.
Always makes me think of this:

the-homer-inline4.jpg
 
Hang on.... I have a problem with the title of the article. ‘Installed on...’? It should be ‘downloaded by’. There is a big difference between downloading and using an app or downloading it to later delete it or never use it.

I know I have downloaded and played with shedloads of apps over the years, but have nothing to do with them now.

Ask yourself this: do you still use every app you have ever downloaded?

EDIT: Reading the source article their terminology is slightly better. They only use the phrase, ‘installs’, not ‘installed’. Which more accurately describes the situation. ‘Installed’ = still installed. Yes, pedantic I know, but journalists should have a good grasp of grammar.

EDIT EDIT: I mean technically you could argue the case for the title of the Macrumors article. But it gives the wrong impression.

/rant over. Sorry.
 
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People love to customize their device and Apple should recognize that, give us the options. All these workarounds are rather clunky.

This is not Steve Job’s Apple anymore, he was adamant in preventing any type of customization and arrogantly deciding for all users what he thought we wanted/needed.
 
This works just like democracy, it's good to give the average user the power to customize his phone, just do not expect him to use it wisely.

I mean, I am yet to see a customized Home Screen that looks better than a Home Screen with stock icons.
I agree with the sentiment of comments saying that it’s subjective, that it’s all personal and all.

But I also agree with your last sentence on a personal level, because I more often than not apply it to myself... if I were to buy a sports car (say a Supra, the Z4 like one) I don’t think I would make a better job at making it look neater by placing stickers on it. In the same way I’m incapable of putting stickers to an iMac, MacBook, iPad or iPhone... don’t see myself customizing tons of icons any time soon.
 
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I can see people playing with it. It is a novelty after all. The really curious thing will be to see how many people are still using these apps after a month.
 
People love to customize their device and Apple should recognize that, give us the options. All these workarounds are rather clunky.

This is not Steve Job’s Apple anymore, he was adamant in preventing any type of customization and arrogantly deciding for all users what he thought we wanted/needed.
And Steve was right. He knew that people are going to “rape” the design philosophy of a product just like back in the days. I see a lot of ugly customized screens by Android users. Apple should stop people letting customize the icons.
 

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And Steve was right. He knew that people are going to “rape” the design philosophy of a product just like back in the days. I see a lot of ugly customized screens by Android users. Apple should stop people letting customize the icons.
Yeah... we don't deserve to customize the device we paid $1200 for... people who think like you are the reason why Apple gets away with all they do.
 
15? holy moly. Guess that's basically everyone who switched to iOS from android and just has to uglify their computers.
 
I agree with the sentiment of comments saying that it’s subjective, that it’s all personal and all.

But I also agree with your last sentence on a personal level, because I more often than not apply it to myself... if I were to buy a sports car (say a Supra, the Z4 like one) I don’t think I would make a better job at making it look neater by placing stickers on it. In the same way I’m incapable of putting stickers to an iMac, MacBook, iPad or iPhone... don’t see myself customizing tons of icons any time soon.
Yeah, but if you bought a Supra you could easily individualize it with different wheels and tires, paint or wrap color, carbon fiber hood, etc. That's what the customization is about; individuality.
 
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Can't wait to turn my iPhone into Mac OS X Tiger! Ah... the glory days

Hopefully more apps/iOS make this feature native.
 
Yeah... we don't deserve to customize the device we paid $1200 for... people who think like you are the reason why Apple gets away with all they do.

... or perhaps the end-to-end integration & quality assurance is the reason Apple isn't the dumpster fire some other phone ecosystems are.

premium offerings attract premium pricing, there's always a lower cost alternative too. I'm happy to pay more if it's good, but I'd be unhappy paying more if it's diluted - I see this as an unwelcome development, perhaps the thin end of the wedge or start of a slippery slope, but to each their own.
 
And Steve was right. He knew that people are going to “rape” the design philosophy of a product just like back in the days. I see a lot of ugly customized screens by Android users. Apple should stop people letting customize the icons.
Eh, what’s the big deal. Let the kids (and adults) do what they want. Sure, those are ugly screens, but who cares? To the end user, maybe that’s the most beautiful screen they’ve ever seen!! There’s no accounting for taste 🤷‍♂️
 
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